NITCHO CORPORATION
2961・Standard Market・Metal Products
Business
Nippon Chouri Ki Co., Ltd. was founded in 1947 and has a history of over 75 years as a comprehensive manufacturer of commercial kitchen equipment for institutional food service. Its core products include dishwashers, sterilizing storage cabinets, tilting kettles, rice cookers, and steam convection ovens, with institutional food service facilities such as school cafeterias, hospital cafeterias, employee cafeterias, and hotels as its main customers. Operating a two-plant system consisting of the Tochigi Plant and Oita Plant, the company primarily produces on a made-to-order basis and has built a direct sales system with branches and sales offices deployed nationwide. It runs a consulting-type business that provides an integrated offering from product planning, development, and design through production, installation, and after-sales service. The company is listed on the Standard Market of the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
Business Model
Of net sales of ¥18,119 million, equipment sales accounted for ¥15,178 million and repair/parts sales for ¥2,941 million. In equipment sales, the company wins large-scale projects through bid- and proposal-based sales activities and provides integrated support through to construction. Repair/parts sales represent a recurring revenue stream derived from maintenance, repair, and parts replacement of previously delivered equipment, with pinpoint sales activities leveraging centralized customer data management to stimulate replacement demand. A consulting approach that proposes optimal solutions regardless of whether they involve in-house or third-party products underpins the company's long-term relationships with customers.
Company Strengths
The company tracks construction years, contractors, and rebuilding schedules for all school lunch centers nationwide, enabling proposal-based sales that stay ahead of competitors. Its domestic production unit share for dishwashers and Tilting Kettles / Rice Cookers for the school market was approximately 20% in FY2020. The order backlog remains at a high level of ¥5,590 million, up 24.8% from the end of the previous fiscal period.
The Consulting Department, Sales and Construction Department, Design and Development Department, Production Department, and After-Sales Service Department work together to provide comprehensive support from kitchen system planning through construction and maintenance. Customer engineers stationed at sales offices nationwide undergo one-year training programs, achieving uniform service quality across the country.
The company has obtained ISO9001 certification on the software side and Public Buildings Association evaluation on the hardware side, securing eligibility to participate in bidding projects for government agencies. Centralized management of customer data and delivery track record data enables customer retention by combining pinpoint sales activities with maintenance proposals.
ENVALITH's Perspective
Performance Trend
Over the past five fiscal years, revenue recovered from a trough of ¥15,468 million in FY2022, peaking at ¥18,444 million in FY2024. FY2025 saw a slight decline to ¥18,119 million. The full-year forecast for FY2026 (ending March 2026) projects revenue growth to ¥19,100 million. On the profit side, following a peak in FY2024 (operating profit of ¥1,059 million), operating profit declined to ¥845 million in FY2025, with a further decrease forecast to ¥820 million in FY2026, continuing a downward trend. For the interim period of FY2026 (ending September 2026), revenue was ¥9,665 million (up 5.2% year-on-year) and operating profit was ¥502 million (up 0.5% year-on-year), supported by an increase in bulk-order contracts in the school lunch segment. However, selling, general and administrative expenses rose to ¥2,154 million (up ¥134 million year-on-year), offsetting the improvement in gross profit margin (from 27.4% to 27.5%). External factors such as soaring material costs, labor shortages, and the impact of U.S. tariff policy remain downward pressures on profitability.
Growth Strategy
A four-pillar growth strategy centered on deepening penetration in the school lunch service sector, expanding into the private-sector market, developing labor-saving products, and expanding repair and equipment sales
Sales activities continue to stimulate replacement demand and promote updates related to equipment. In the interim period of FY2026 (ending March 2026), an increase in bulk order projects in the school lunch service sector directly contributed to year-on-year growth in net sales and operating profit, confirming the effectiveness of the strategy.
Sales activities targeting institutional food service sectors such as hospitals, welfare facilities, and hotels have continued from the previous period. The company aims to build a new customer base by horizontally deploying existing product, construction, and maintenance know-how developed for school lunch services. The specific contribution to net sales is not individually disclosed in the financial results report.
The company is advancing the development of labor-saving and efficiency-improving products to address the deepening labor shortage issues faced by institutional food service facilities. Research and development activities have continued to be promoted since the previous period, aiming to strengthen future product competitiveness and generate new demand. The specific timing of commercialization and contribution to sales is not disclosed in the financial results report.
In response to rising raw material and material costs, the company continues to manage procurement costs and pass on costs through pricing, among other measures. The gross profit margin for the interim period of FY2026 (ending March 2026) was 27.5% (27.4% in the same period of the previous year), showing a slight improvement, indicating some effect from these measures. However, an increase in selling, general and administrative expenses has constrained the improvement in the operating profit margin.
Last updated: July 17, 2026